WOMEN could be the answer to fill the dire skills gap in the construction industry.

While the total number of UK apprentices has risen by 57 per cent in the last five years, a figure to cheer in this National Apprenticeship Week, those in construction have plummeted by almost a quarter and females make up just 1.7 per cent.

London’s Barking & Dagenham College is one bucking the trend however with four per cent of its construction students female.

Kath Moore of company Women in Construction urged: “Construction should be sold to young women as an area they will be welcomed into.

"It’s potentially well paid and has opportunities to progress. The industry needs to target young women.”

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Moore trained as a carpenter at the age of 19, but was considered ‘too old’ for an apprenticeship at a time when these were only available for 16-18 year old.

Times have thankfully changed however with 19 to 24 year olds now actively encouraged to take up apprenticeships too.

Amy Harrington, 26 a female apprentice electrician from Essex trains at Barking & Dagenham College for one day a week while working for CHP, a housing association.

But fewer than one in every thousand electrical contractors in the UK is female. Keen to encourage other young women to follow in her footsteps, Amy says she really enjoys her work because “as an apprentice, being out on jobs with my colleagues means I learn aspects that I can apply to my college work and vice versa.

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Jobs for the Girls campaigns to encourage women into apprenticeships

"Electrical work isn’t particularly hard physically, but it tests your logic skills so you have to be mentally agile.”

Emma Clancy, chief executive of NICEIC the UK’s voluntary body for registered electricians whose Jobs for the Girls campaign aims to encourage more women into the electrical industry, added, “It is great to see young women like Amy have such a positive attitude and determination to succeed.

“The construction and engineering sectors are growing and now offering more opportunities for skilled workers. There is a pressing need for qualified electricians.”

If you’re interested in becoming an apprentice or taking on one, for more details see the National Apprenticeship Service on 08000 150 600 or go to GOV.UK and search ‘apprenticeships’ or ‘traineeships’.